A Whole New World
by ninjasandbacon
Summary: She returned, a package of angel hair noodles clasped in one hand. “So after we eat, we're gonna make out, right?” Dan's eyes bulged as he tried to keep the milk inside his mouth. He let it out in the sink, gasping.“Rehearse! I mean rehearse!”


"As you know, each senior class from both Constance and St. Jude's has a play each spring." Headmistress Queller said the second the last person sat down in the auditorium. Mandatory auditions will be held today. The play or rather, musical will be Aladdin."

A collective groan rose up from the class, but quickly stopped when Queller started glaring at them. "However, all of you will not have to perform. If you don't meet Mr. Carlyle's standards, some sophomores will be auditioning."

Nate raised a hand, earning groans and glares. "Yes, Mr Archibald?"

"We don't actually have to dress up, do we? If we get the part I mean." Nate asked warily, somehow unaware of the large amount of people glaring at him.

"Yes, you will have to as it is a play. Now if you don't have anymore questions, we'll start the auditions. Ladies..go pick a male partner."

Almost immediately, Serena plopped herself next to Dan. "You're my partner."

"Do I get a say in this matter?" Dan asked, smiling.

"No." Serena stuck her tongue out at him. Being best friends for almost 17 years, they stuck together for almost every Constance and St. Jude's project.

"Please line up in front of the drama room once you have your partner." Mr. Carlyle called, his surprisingly loud voice heard all over the auditorium.

"Shall we go, partner?" Dan stood, helping Serena up.

She giggled, linking her arm through his and following Nate and Blair to the steadily growing line in front of the drama room.

"So can you sing?" Serena nudged Dan playfully with her hip as they waited in line.

"Serena, you've known me for a long time and you don't know if I can sing?" He clutched his chest playfully. "Some friend you are."

"Hey! Its not my fault you refuse to sing in front of me whenever I go to the loft." She rolled her eyes, poking him in the bicep.

Dan stuck his tongue out at her. "You'd make fun of me."

"No I wouldn't!" Serena insisted, grabbing both of his hands. "Besides I have to hear it in five minutes anyway!"

"Just because I've heard your damn voice a million times.." He trailed off, smiling at her.

"What is _that _supposed to mean?" Serena put her hands on her hips, glaring at him. "Are you saying that I have a bad voice?"

"No." Dan drew out the word as if it were more than one syllable.

She rolled her eyes, punching him lightly in the arm as they moved up in line. "You're so mean."

"Sorry." He leaned forward and kissed her on the cheek, his way of apologizing which lead to people constantly thinking that they were a couple.

She smiled, watching as Blair and Nate came out. Blair was smiling smugly while Nate had a scowl on his face.

"Next!" Mr Carlyle boomed, shocking them both. They hurried in the large room, standing beside each other. "Names?"

"Dan. Dan Humphrey."

"Serena van der Woodsen."

Mr. Carlyle brushed back a lock of hair that was obscuring his eyes. He was the only attractive teacher in the two schools. He had dirty blonde hair and glittering blue eyes. "Okay, what parts do you two want to be?"

"Aladdin and Jasmine." Serena replied automatically, smiling at Dan. He shrugged, letting her know he didn't care either way.

Mr. Carlyle laughed and pointed at Dan. "Alright, let's see if you're any better than the last guy. I want you to sing a capella. That means without music. Serena, if you could take a seat until we're finished with Mr. Humphrey that'd be great."

Serena squeezed Dan's hand before going and sitting in the chair a few feet away.

"Okay Dan I presume you know the song Chariot by Gavin DeGraw?" Dan nodded quickly and Mr. Carlyle smiled. "Good, sing the chorus to Ms. Van der Woodsen as Aladdin would do to Jasmine.."

"Yes sir." Dan took a breath to calm himself and knelt down on one knee, taking Serena's hands in his. "_Oh chariot, your golden waves are walking down upon this face. Oh chariot I'm singing out loud. To guide me, give me your strength._"

Serena felt her breath hitch in her throat as Dan practically serenaded her. He smiled at her, still holding her hands and looked over to Mr. Carlyle, who was scribbling on a legal pad.

"Very good, Mr. Humphrey. Now I want you to do the same, except just sort of slump and pretend you're Ms. Van der Woodsen's beau. The song is Street Rat, the slower version." Mr. Carlyle handed Dan a piece of paper. He scanned through the lyrics quickly and nodded, standing up.

He made Serena stand up and walked a few feet away. Dan hung his head and started to sing, "_Riff raff, street rat. I don't buy that._" He walked closer to Serena, still singing. "_If only they'd looked closer, would they see a poor boy? No siree._" He took Serena's hands in his, crooning softly to her. "_They'd find out..there's so much more to me._"

"Brilliant, Daniel!" Mr. Carlyle stood clapping. "The best so far! Now Serena, your turn. And after that, the duet!"

Dan gave Serena a smile as he sat down in the chair she had previously occupied.

"Now, since Jasmine doesn't sing quite as much, I'm just going to have you sing one selection. Before you do, I must say, your chemistry together is simply fantastic."

Serena blushed, sneaking a peek at the equally red Dan. "Thank you Mr. Carlyle."

"Welcome. Now please if you will, Love Story by Taylor Swift. A few bars and the chorus."

Serena nodded, silently praying that she sounded halfway decent. "_I got tired of waiting, wondering if you were ever coming around. My faith in you was fading when I met you on the outskirts of town. And I said,_" She took a breath and glanced over at Dan nervously who was smiling reassuringly.

"_Romeo save me, I've been feeling so alone. I keep waiting for you, but you never come. Is this in my head, I don't know what to think. He knelt to the ground and pulled out a ring and said: Marry me Juliet, you never have to be alone. I love you and that's all I really know. I talked to your dad, you'll pick out a white dress. It's a love story, baby just say yes._"

"That was very good, Ms. Van der Woodsen. Now please the duet." Mr. Carlyle handed Dan another sheet of paper, gesturing that he should stand next to Serena. Dan took his place and handed the paper to Serena.

"You ready?" He whispered.

"Let's do it." She smiled back.

"_A whole new world, a new fantastic point of view, no one to tell us 'no' or where to go or say we're only dreaming." _Dan sang, starting at the part where she would soon start singing.

"_A whole new world, a dazzling place I never knew. But when I'm way up here, its crystal clear that now I'm in a whole new world with you."_

"_Now I'm in a whole new world with you." _Dan jumped in, their voices blending together.

Mr. Carlyle nodded, making them both stop. "Very good. Check the bulletin board tomorrow and call in the next two."

--

Dan stood behind Nate, watching as his friend's shoulders slumped. "Dude..I'm freakin Sultan. The short guy!"

"That sucks. I thought you were gonna get the guard."

"Eric got that." Nate groaned, walking away and shaking his head.

Dan rolled his eyes as he scanned the list, but before he got to see who was Aladdin, a pair of hands covered his eyes. "Guess who?!"

"Uh....Chuck?" Dan laughed, as his eyesight was restored. Serena stood in front of him, arms crossed.

"Honestly, I don't know why I'm friends with you." She pouted, turning to look at the cast list.

Dan wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. "Sorry. Forgive me?"

Serena shivered from his hot breath on her neck and sighed over dramatically. "Fine. I'll forgive you." She giggled, turning to give him a better hug.

"Good. Are you cold? You kinda shivered just then." Without waiting for a reply, he took off his scarf and wrapped it around her neck, careful to brush her hair back.

"Thanks." She smiled, finally looking at the list. "I got Jasmine!!" She looked at it again, searching for the other lead. "Oh my god! You got Aladdin!!"

"Excuse me, you're Dan and Serena, right?" A short sophomore stood in front of them. "Can I take your picture? For yearbook?"

"Sure."

"Cool, can you guys, like, stand together? Like yeah. Thanks, you two, like, got the most, like, votes." She rambled, snapping pictures quickly.

"For what?" Dan asked, once she stopped taking pictures.

"Cutest couple. I thought for sure, like, Blair and, like, Nate would win since he's, like, super hot." She scurried off, leaving both Dan and Serena slightly confused.

"When did we start dating?" Dan asked, his lips curling into a smile.

"I guess..a while ago according to everyone?" Serena shrugged, laughing.

"We have to kiss, you know." Dan muttered. "For Aladdin." He added, seeing her confused expression.

"Oh."

"What, you don't want to kiss me?" Dan pretended to be hurt. "Fine, then. I'll just go tell Mr. Carlyle I don't want to be Aladdin!"

"Dan! I'm just kidding!" Serena rolled her eyes as he turned around, brown eyes glittering at her.

"Good. How about we practice?"

Serena raised her eyebrows at him, trying not to laugh. "Well I would, but you know, there are rules against public displays of affection." She leaned in close to him, placing a hand on his cheek. "However...I don't think rules should get in the way of rehearsal." She kissed him, her lips barely grazing his. She pulled away quickly, smirking "I'm late for class. See you later! Oh and thanks for agreeing to pick up my script for me."

--

"You will order the princess to marry me." Chuck stroked his new glued on goatee as he pointed his snake staff into Nate's eyes.

"I...will..order...the...princess...to" Nate shook his head, hair staying unmoving under the turban. "But you're so old!"

"STOP!" Mr. Carlyle shook his head. "Gentlemen, please with _feeling._ You are Jafar and you are the sultan. Go..go practice where I don't have to watch you."

Nate rolled his eyes, shoving his turban under his arm. "Let's go man."

"Jasmine! Aladdin! On stage!"

Dan and Serena ran up on stage, clutching their scripts. Mr. Carlyle walked up to them, flipping to a page in his. "I presume you two have seen the entire script. I have added a few things to make it more appropriate for your age. Therefore, I would like you two to practice the scene that comes after your duet. As for right now, balcony scene!"

"Sir..the balcony hasn't been built yet."

"Then just practice without the damn balcony!"

"Okay." Dan took a breath, glancing down at his script. "Princess Jasmine, you're very...punctual!"

"Punctual?" Serena rose an eyebrow.

"Beautiful. I mean beautiful."

"Hmm, and I'm rich too, you know." Serena started to walk towards him, placing a hand on his chest when she got close enough.

"Yeah."

"The daughter of a sultan." She bit her lower lip, watching as 'Aladdin' started to breath faster.

"I know."

"A fine prize for any prince to marry."

"Uh, right. Right. A prince like me." Dan smiled weakly at her.

"Right, a prince like you and every other stuffed shirt, swaggering peacock I've met!" She ripped off his turban, shoving it in his chest.

"Jasmine.."

"Just go jump off a balcony!" She turned, storming off.

"You're right," Dan sighed.

"What?" She turned, eyes raking over him.

"You're um right. You aren't just some prize to be won." Dan muttered, looking disappointed. "You should be free to make your own choices. I'll just, uh, go now."

"MAGNIFICENT!" Mr. Carlyle exclaimed, spilling his coffee. "Now rehearsal is over, but I expect you to practice with each other. Especially you, Jasmine and Aladdin!"

The cast quickly fled, quietly and swiftly. "Hey..Serena. You were great up there. Do you want to grab some dinner?" James Button, a tall, fair haired lacrosse player sidled up to Serena as she and Dan were walking out.

"Um, no thanks James. Dan and I already have plans." Serena quickly grabbed Dan's hand, intertwining their fingers.

"Are you two, like, dating?"

"Um, actually," Dan winced as Serena squeezed his hand tightly. "I mean yeah we are."

James looked crestfallen. "Oh cool. I'll catch you around then."

Once he was out of earshot, Dan looked at Serena curiously. "We have plans?"

"Yes, silly." Serena giggled, rolling her eyes. "Didn't you hear Mr. Carlyle? He wants us to rehearse, so I thought we could grab a bite to eat too."

"Serena...thats a make out scene." Dan muttered, fully aware that she was still holding on to his hand.

"So?"

"Well it'd be kind of..you know..weird."

"Dan, we've kissed before. Its acting, no big deal, right?" Serena looked up at him as they entered the gates of the Palace.

"Right." He smiled, desperately trying to remember if he had gum or mints.

--

"That's our dinner?" Dan asked, disbelief splattered across his face as Serena held up a package of Teddy Grahams. "Serena, you've got to be kidding me."

"No...thats dessert!" She laughed, putting the box down. "Let's call room service."

"Or I could teach you how to cook."

"Last time, we got banned from the kitchen."

"Last time, we were five." Dan laughed, making his way around the counter. "Come on, don't you trust me?"

"Fine." She let him pull her into the kitchen. "What are we making?"

"Spaghetti." He pulled out a pot and held it out to her. "Fill this up with water."

"Yes sir." She giggled, carrying it over to the stove. "Okay what now?"

"Turn on the stove and throw in a pinch of salt."

She set the stove on high and reached for the container of salt. "Do I use the spoon?"

"No, here." He laughed, coming from behind and taking her hand. "Pinch it." He set his hand on hers, trying to ignore the feeling that shot up his spine and directed it towards the pot. "Now put the lid on and wait till it bubbles." He muttered, suddenly all too aware of how close they were.

"Thanks Dan." She turned around and kissed him on the cheek. "I'll go get the noodles."

"No problem." He muttered slowly, shaking his head. He dumped the sauce out in a pan, letting it simmer on the stove.

She returned, a package of angel hair noodles clasped in one hand. "So after we eat, we're gonna make out, right?"

Dan's eyes bulged as he tried to keep the milk inside his mouth. He let it out in the sink, gasping.

"Rehearse! I mean rehearse!" Serena laughed, blushing slightly.

"Yeah sure.." Dan wiped his mouth with a nearby napkin, coughing.

"Are you okay?"

"Perfect." He attempted a smile as the pot suddenly boiled, making Serena rush over with the noodles.

"So what now?" Serena asked, staring down at the pot.

"Stir." He handed her a wooden spoon. "I'll go make the salad."

He pulled out various salad ingredients from the refrigerator before remembering the sauce. "Stir the sauce too. Don't add anything to it though."

"Different spoon?"

"Yeah." He washed the lettuce, starting to tear it into pieces. Dropping them in a bowl, he distracted Serena from her 'cooking'. "Do you have croutons?"

"Pantry."

"Thanks." Within ten minutes, the salad and spaghetti were on the table. "Why is there only one plate of spaghetti?"

"I couldn't find any other plates and besides, we share food all the time. What's the problem?" Serena looked at him, concern etched across her face.

"Nothing." He smiled at her, starting to eat the salad. "Its just...you know."

"No, I don't know. Daniel Humphrey, tell me. What's wrong?" Serena placed a hand on his forehead. "Are you sick?"

"No." He shook his head, taking her hand off his forehead. "Really, I'm fine."

"Okay, whatever you say." She took a bite of the salad. "This is really good. You're good at this."

"My dad taught me after I tried to teach you." Dan laughed, digging his fork into the spaghetti. "So...Mr. Carlyle said something to me when I went to get the scripts the other day."

"Yeah?"

"He wanted to know if the two of us would consider dating. For the show."

"Oh. What'd you -"

"I said no."

Serena nodded, twirling her fork and trying to tug the spaghetti up. "Good."

"You're too good to be used like that, Serena." He whispered, watching as her eyes darted from their hands on the table to him.

"Thanks." She released her fork and wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. "You're the best Dan."

He pulled back smiling. Placing a hand on her cheek, he licked his lips. "Can I kiss you?" He asked softly.

"That's not in the script." She murmured, leaning her forehead on his.

"We're not rehearsing right now." He laughed softly, nuzzling her nose with his. He leaned in and ever so lightly captured her lips with his.

"That was nice." Serena whispered, once he pulled away.

"Yeah..yeah it was." Dan smiled at her, leaning in to kiss her again softly. "How long have we been friends?"

"17 years."

"I've had feelings for you for at least ten years and I never acted on it." He shook his head, muttering to himself.

"You know better now." Serena smiled, kissing him again.

"Yeah. Come on. Lets finish eating. We still have to rehearse." Dan picked up his fork and tried to tug up like Serena had before.

Eventually, they both got their forks to their mouths. A solitary strand of spaghetti hung between them and Serena started to giggle. "You can have it." She mumbled.

"Share?" He offered, laughing. She nodded, starting to slurp the noodle, trying not to burst out in giggles as he did the same. Any intention of giggling stopped when their lips met again, molding to an already familiar form.

"Mmm, you know..in a way..this is rehearsing." Serena giggled as Dan nuzzled her neck.

He laughed, his previous activities coming to a halt. "You're so cute."

"You are too." She giggled, leaning forward and kissing him on the neck. As she pulled away, her lips grazed his collar leaving a large pink lip gloss print. She opened her mouth to apologize, but he shook his head, smiling.

"It's fine, and now that you remind me, I should get going. We have school tomorrow, remember?"

"Dan look outside. Its been _raining. _Call your dad and ask him if you can stay over."

"You just want me to stay over." Dan rolled his eyes, pulling out his phone.

"Hey dad. Serena doesn't think I should come home, apparently its raining a lot outside." Serena stuck her tongue out at him before continuing to eat. "Yeah okay. I'll borrow some. Alright, bye."

"Yay! You're sleeping over." Serena hugged him tightly, making him drop the phone.

"Serena..my phone."

"Oh..sorry."

--

"You should practice that song you sang yesterday, Street Rat." Serena muttered, flipping through the script.

"Why? Did I sound bad?"

"No, I just want to hear you sing that again." Serena admitted, a pink blush forming on her cheeks. "You're going to have get into costume too." She tossed him his vest, hat and pants.

"Serena..come on." Dan looked down, embarrassed.

"Will you change if I do it too?" Serena held up the blue flowy material that made up her outfit.

"Okay." He smiled shyly, undoing his tie and taking off his shirt. "I'm not wearing the hat though." He stripped off his khaki pants and quickly put on the Aladdin pants. "These pants are really weird, you know."

"You don't look half bad, Humphrey." Serena giggled, watching as threw his clothes in one pile.

"Your turn." Dan replied, collapsing onto the bed and holding up her blue Jasmine outfit.

"Fine, but you have to turn around. No peeking!" She warned him as she quickly unbuttoned her blouse.

"You know, I could take your clothes off _for _you, if you want." Dan offered, sneaking a peek as she slid the top part of the Jasmine costume on.

"Very funny, Dan." She retorted, slipping on the bottom half of the costume. "Throw me my script."

"The one with my name and hearts everywhere?" Dan teased, rifling though her bag. "Here."

"Shut up." Serena stuck her tongue out, sitting in his lap. "So we make out after you take me home, right?"

"Er..yeah." Dan looked up from his script and stood.

"Good night, my handsome prince."

"Sleep well, Princess." Dan leaned in quickly, kissing her.

She pulled away smiling. "Maybe you should stay a little longer." She pulled him onto the bed, giggling as he nuzzled his nose against her neck.

"Jasmine..what if your father comes in?" Dan mumbled, doing his best to stay focused.

"He'll be glad I finally found a suitor." Serena smiled, kissing him again.

"Of course Princess." Dan murmured as she flipped them over so that she was straddling his hips. She kissed a line of kisses down his practically bare chest, her tongue flicking against his nipples. "Serena.." He groaned as she liberally attacked his neck. "I think this is moving from PG to X"

"We're done rehearsing then." Serena giggled, grabbing a fistful of Dan's hair. "Who knew making out with my best friend would be this fun?"

Dan pulled back, head connecting with her pillow. "Best friend?"

"What's wrong?" Serena still sat on top of him, but he shook his head angrily.

"Get off. Please."

"Dan..talk to me." She pinned his shoulders down. He sat up, refusing to meet her eyes. He pushed her off gently, taking off his vest and sliding his yellow St. Jude's shirt on.

"I thought.." He trailed off, shaking his head again. Hurt flashed in his eyes as he turned to look at her again.

"I won't know what's wrong if you don't talk to me!" Serena stood, placing her hand on his bare chest.

"Forget it. Just forget all of this." Dan mumbled sadly, picking up his messenger bag. "I'm going home."

"Daniel fucking Humphrey, you're not leaving. Its raining outside." She pushed him back onto the bed, sitting in his lap so he couldn't get up, without slamming her to the ground. "We're friends, you can tell me."

"That's just it, Serena." He growled, trying to push her off. "We're _friends_."

"Yeah, so? What's the big deal if we're friends Dan?" Serena wrapped her arms around his neck, leaning forward to kiss him lightly. He pulled back, scowling.

"Stop."

"What is your problem Dan?!" Serena sighed, exasperated.

"Friends don't kiss." He stated bluntly.

"Oh." Serena's eyes turned soft as she realized what he was talking about. "I didn't..we never talked about what we were..are."

"I thought _this _indicated we were something. Something more than friends." Dan said, his voice thick.

"We are. I love you Dan." She leaned in and kissed him gently, her hands reaching for the buttons he had managed to do on his shirt.

"Wait." He reached for her hands, shaking his head. "Let's...sleep, okay? We can do this after we talk."

"Okay." She let him take off his shirt and Aladdin pants, leaving him in his boxers. She picked up his yellow shirt and quickly undressed, putting it on instead. She nudged him the second she got in the bed, needing him to scoot over.

"Dan?" She asked, smiling when his arm wrapped around her waist in the darkness.

"Yeah?" He yawned, voice heavy with sleep.

"Do you love me?" She murmured, turning so that she was nose to nose with him. She hated how she sounded so..desperate and clingy.

"Of course I do." He pressed a kiss to the side of her head, her hair tickling him slightly. "I've loved you since the day I met you. I just didn't know it."

She felt herself relax in his arms and turned to kiss him. "Good night."

"Night, Serena."

--

"Jasmine..do you trust me?" Dan held out his hand for her to take as they performed together for opening night.

A sly smile spread across Serena's face as she took his hand. "Yes." Since they couldn't exactly get a magic carpet, they started to dance across the stage.

"_I can show you the world. Shining, shimmering splendid. Tell me Princess, now when did you last let your heart decide?" _Dan picked a rose, held it to his nose and handed it to Serena, smiling. "_I can open your eyes, take you wonder by wonder. Over sideways, and under. On a magic carpet ride"_

They continued dancing around the set, Dan partially chasing Serena during it. He finally caught up to her at the end, taking her in his arms and carrying her over to a small 'pond'. "That was..fun."

Dan smiled at her, throwing an arm around her shoulder. "Yeah, it was."

"Too bad Abu has to miss this."

"Nah he hates watching dancing..I mean..uh"

"I knew it!" She pulled off his turban, glaring at him. "You are the boy from the marketplace. Why did you lie to me?"

"Jasmine, I'm sorry." Dan pulled her back down as she threw the turban at him and tried to walk away.

"Did you think I was stupid?"

"No!"

"That I wouldn't figure it out?"

"No! I mean, I hoped you wouldn't. No, that's not what I meant." Dan fumbled over his words, playing with the turban and putting it back on his head.

"Who are you? Tell me the truth." Serena demanded.

"The truth? The truth...the truth is..I sometimes dress as a commoner to escape the pressure of palace life." Dan stammered, lying. "But I really am a prince!" The feather on his turban fell forward and he brushed it aside.

"Why didn't you just tell me?"

"Well, you know, um royalty going out into the city in disguise, it sounds a little strange, don't you think?"

"Not that strange." Serena murmured, flicking the feather up and cuddling into his side.

They remained in that position as the curtains closed slowly, signaling the end of the scene. Dan quickly pulled Serena up so that the stage hands could move the props around. He pushed her into his 'dressing room' and started kissing her.

"Dan, what are you doing?" Serena giggled, his hands tickling her.

"Practicing for our next scene." He murmured, kissing her another time before pulling both of them out onto the set. They stood on the balcony as the curtains opened again.

"Good night, my handsome prince."

"Sleep well, princess." Dan leaned into kiss her and got a push from behind, making him stumble so that both he and Serena fell on the bed.

"Maybe you should stay awhile." Serena stage whispered so that the audience could still hear her.

"Good idea." Dan said, pressing his lips to hers. His turban was quickly off his head and on the ground. There was only so much self control he had and he had to keep his hands on Serena's waist or get hell from Mr. Carlyle later.

A sharp knock made Dan tear his lips from Serena's and he fell to the floor. "Jasmine? Are you in there?" It was Nate, being the fatherly figure he was supposed to be.

"Aladdin, go." Serena pushed Dan off stage as Nate came in, looking more like a suitor than Jasmine's father.

--

"_A whole new world_" Dan crooned, kissing Serena's knuckles.

"_A whole new life"_

"_For you and me." _They sang together, their harmony causing a few tears in the audience.

Fake fireworks exploded, streamers flying everywhere as they kissed again, the applause thunderous as the curtains closed.


End file.
